Category Archives: Christian Life

WALK IN THE LIGHT!

Christian Life, ,

1 John 1:7 NIV
[7] “But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin.”

We have recently explored the reasons for much of the chaos that is happening in our country and, indeed, everywhere in the world. Leaders are telling stories that lead people into false thinking and false action based on lies. I’m fact, lying leaders are everywhere, both in the secular and the religious world, peddling their stories to suit their own agendas or to satisfy and spread their own prejudices.

To use the biblical expression, they “walk in darkness” because their evil desires and motives are hidden in the stories they tell. To “walk”, in this sense, is to conduct one’s life in keeping with the narrative one believes. If someone believes the narrative that he is better than others, in keeping with his belief, he will act accordingly, be it to belittle or insult others or even to get rid of them.

The kingdom of God, by stark contrast, is also a realm, though unseen, as real as the realm of evil and the Evil One in which we live. God’s kingdom, the way He governs the seen and unseen realms, is based on real truth, not the so-called “truth” that is convenient for each human individual. Real truth is objective. Objective truth never changes because it originates in God who is the embodiment of truth, regardless of whether we believe it not.

John’s narrative is, “God is light!” What is light? Light is, among many other things, the energy that reveals everything as it is. Therefore, God’s nature is to reveal and expose everything as it is, both good and evil.

To walk in the light, as our Scripture requires, means that we align our lives with God’s unchanging standard of doing the right thing regardless of whether it is convenient or not. God always reveals everything, good and bad, without partiality.

When we flick a light switch, the energy of electricity powers a light source to reveal what is in that space without impartiality. If the space is clean or dirty, the light will reveal its state. The light does not make the space clean or dirty. It simply reveals what it is.

When each person in the fellowship of God’s people, in families, or communities of people anywhere, are living in the light of God’s scrutiny by obeying His instructions, harmony prevails. We only keep bumping into each other when we “walk” in darkness.

The goal of our togetherness as believers in God’s family is fellowship… being one with the Father and the Son, through the work of the Spirit in us, living together with people in love and unity. The only way to maintain the fellowship created by the Spirit, is to “walk in the light.”

“Walking in the light” has two purposes, to reveal and get rid of whatever “darkness” is hindering harmony, and to keep us in step with God by walking together in the same direction.

We walk in darkness when we take care of ourselves at the expense of others. We walk in the light when we take care of others at our expense.

What happens when we walk in darkness? Our own desires clash with other people’s desires. The outcome? Chaos!

The solution? Allow the light of God’s truth to expose the darkness of our selfishness. In humility, we acknowledge where we have gone wrong. This kind of honesty, taking responsibility for our wrong attitudes and actions, constitutes transparency…walking in the light.

In this environment of transparency, the blood of Jesus does its work like a winsdscreen wiper. His blood, the forgiveness of sin, automatically keeps us clean and free from guilt.

To maintain this fellowship of the saints together, in harmony with God, transparency requires humility, honesty, and….most of all, grace, grace to admit wrong, to accept help, and to return to the way lit by God’s truth. Grace celebrates weakness and acknowledges God’s power to overcome selfishness. These are the ingredients that make walking in the light possible on our way, together with Jesus, to the eternal realm of the Father.

LET GO AND LET GOD…

Christian Life, ,

How often we hear this statement, “Let go and let God…!” Where does it originate?

Could it be a modern version of Psalm 46:10?

[10] “He says, “Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.”

No matter what country we live in, no matter the ideologies of those who govern us, no matter the hidden intentions of the people in charge, we will always be pawns in the hands of unscrupulous and incompetent rulers, who sail this ship of state without God, by the evil standards of worldly wisdom, underpinned by “envy and selfish ambition”.

James 3:15-16 NIV
[15] “Such “wisdom” does not come down from heaven but is earthly, unspiritual, demonic. [16] For where you have envy and selfish ambition, there you find disorder and every evil practice.”

David knew the situation well. He was king of Israel, but he was surrounded by kings of nations who ruled by worldly wisdom. He felt the hot breath of those who had their greedy eyes on his kingdom.

In the ferment of earthly conflicts, David found a place of peace and safety, a place of refuge for those who take shelter in the presence of the Most High.

The Hebrew word, “raphah”, translated “be still”, has the thought of “to slacken”, translated in many different ways in keeping with the context. God says, in the face of wars and conflicts everywhere, slacken your grip on…what?

We can answer that question according to our own personal response to the uncertainties and insecurities of our present circumstances.

We are inclined to hold tightly to our doubts and fears, our worries and anxieties, because these reactions are spontaneous and real. We are plagued by the “what ifs” when storms around us are raging unabated.

How can we, then, find the peace and safety the Bible offers even in the everyday things that happen around us and even to us?

In contrast to the ferment in the world, there is a city, a secure place of residence where we can flourish in the spirit realm, governed by God Himself. David describes it as a place of peace, security, and provision.

Psalms 46:4-5 NLT
[4] “A river brings joy to the city of our God, the sacred home of the Most High. [5] God dwells in that city; it cannot be destroyed. From the very break of day, God will protect it.”

Whatever David saw and experienced, this “city”, this realm which was stable and secure, was the place in which his heart lived in the Israel over which he ruled as king. He was surrounded by enemy nations who were constantly aggressive towards him and his people. God described him as “a man of war”. Yet, in his heart he knew peace because he lived in that city.

David knew what it was like to be harassed by personal and national enemies and even to be at war in his own family…and yet, he also knew the place of peace in the presence of God. He lived in that realm, conducting his affairs and the affairs of his nation from within the walls of that city.

What was his secret? David had learnt to “let go” of everything over which he had no control.

That’s the real problem!

Living in God’s city means letting go of many things that prevent us from enjoying the peace of that realm, those things that tie us to the world and its worldly wisdom.

What things?

Worries and concerns are our way of trying to keep a hold on that over which we have no power.

Do you get it? We don’t worry about the things we can do! We worry about the things we can’t do!

Living in God’s city means that God will take care of every detail, both whatever we can do and whatever we cannot do. There will be no failure of “service delivery” in His realm, no “load shedding”, no incompetent managers who don’t “maintain infrastructure”, and no “potholes” in the streets of gold!

We don’t have to wait until we die to live in that city. In our hearts, we can live there now, carefree in the care of God. We can only take up residence in that city when we “let go” of every hindrance to faith and every obstacle to fellowship with Him and His people.

Those who left their homeland to escape the pressures of an evil government, had to make a clean break with their past. They had to let go of everything they knew to start a new life.

We, too, must let go of whatever we have suffered to live in God’s realm.

2 Corinthians 5:17 NLT
[17] “This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun!”

We cannot drag our old hurts, our self-pity and grudges into God’s realm. Let go, and let God do His gracious work of the real transformation, not from good to bad but from inner strife to peace.
As David wrote…

Psalms 119:165 NIV
[165]” Great peace have those who love your law, and nothing can make them stumble.”

It’s the only way to thrive in a hostile world.

TO REIGN, JESUS SUFFERED – 5

Christian Life, ,

2 Corinthians 5:21 NIV
[21] “God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.”

A thought crossed my mind relating to our suffering with Jesus. How much do I, as a child of God, honour and respect the righteousness of Jesus that He gave to me? To suffer with Him is to overcome the temptation to retaliate when I am unjustly treated, and to rejoice in my weakness so that I am strong through His grace. If these responses to injustice qualifiy me to share His glory and to reign with Him, how does His gift of righteousness motivate me to resist the sins retaliation incur in this life?

Let’s look at it this way. What did Jesus’ righteousness cost Him? Although Jesus was God, He, as the God-man, was not automatically righteous. Paul said that He set aside His divine nature to become fully human like us. This implies that He was as subject to temptation as we are.

Philippians 2:6 NIV
[6] “… Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage”…

Since Jesus was called “the last Adam”, He was born in the image of “the first Adam” whom God created innocent. In the interval between the creation of the first Adam and the birth of the last Adam, Adam fell into sin, and everyone in the human race born through him has the nature of the fallen Adam.

Romans 5:12 NIV
[12] “Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all people, because all sinned—”

The last Adam came to restore righteousness to all who are born again through Him who lived a perfectly righteous life in a sinful environment. The temptation for Him to retaliate was so much greater than for the first (innocent) Adam because He had an array of enemies who were bent on pushing Him to sin. In their rejection of Jesus as their Messiah, His own people hunted and hounded Him to death.

The prophetic picture of the Messiah, most clearly described in Isaiah 53, is that of a lamb going to the slaughter without defence or protest.

Isaiah 53:7 NIV
[7] “He was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth; he was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before its shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth.”

Jesus’ refusal to go the way of self-pity or self-defense cost Him blood, sweat, and tears for victory over His human nature…to be righteous.

Hebrews 5:7-9 NIV
[7] “During the days of Jesus’ life on earth, he offered up prayers and petitions with fervent cries and tears to the one who could save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverent submission. [8] Son though he was, he learned obedience from what he suffered [9] and, once made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him… “

Since Jesus did die physically, this death, reflected in His prayers, could only have been referring to the spiritual death that would have been His fate had He even once stepped over the line. He could only become the perfect sacrifice for our sin if He never sinned.

In the face of His greatest temptation…not to avoid the cross but to endure without one thought of bitterness or revenge, He submitted to the Father’s will.

Mark 14:34-36 NLT
[34] “He told them, “My soul is crushed with grief to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with me.” [35] He went on a little farther and fell to the ground. He prayed that, if it were possible, the awful hour awaiting him might pass him by. [36] “Abba, Father,” he cried out, “everything is possible for you. Please take this cup of suffering away from me. Yet I want your will to be done, not mine.”

Remember…

Hebrews 2:18 NIV
[18] “Because he himself suffered when he was tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted.”

What was this “cup of suffering”?

Betrayal! Shame! All the injustice He endured that put Him, the Son of God, on a Roman execution stake, naked, in the eyes of all His people… instead of retaliation, He prayed for their forgiveness.

The price Jesus paid to earn His perfect righteousness was very great. He paid for it with His life. That He never sinned was the key to His resurrection from the dead.

Romans 1:4 NIV
[4] “… and who, through the Spirit of holiness, was appointed the Son of God in power by his resurrection from the dead: Jesus Christ our Lord.”

This means that, just as the first Adam, representing the human race, sinned and dragged humanity with him, so the last Adam, also representing the human race, lived a righteous human life and is qualified, therefore, to impute His righteousness to every person who submits to His authority.

How did Jesus overcome temptation?

Hebrews 12:2 NIV
[2]…”For the joy set before him he endured the cross, SCORNING ITS SHAME, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.”

1 Peter 2:23 NIV
[23] “When they hurled their insults at him, HE DID NOT RETALIATE; when he suffered, he made no threats. Instead, he entrusted himself to him who judges justly.”

We receive His gift of righteousness with great honour because of who gave it to us and because of what it cost Him to give it to us.

This righteousness of Jesus which clothes us, covers our sin nature and qualifies us to stand in the Father’s presence acquitted, not guilty, and perfectly righteous, is of such value to us that we should never treat it with disrespect.

Remember our Scripture?

2 Corinthians 5:21 NIV
[21] “God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that IN HIM we might become the RIGHTEOUSNESS OF GOD.”

Paul is saying, not just that we become righteous, but that we become THE RIGHTEOUSNESS OF GOD. This is enormous! This means that God views us exactly as He views His Son, as righteous as He, the Father, is.

How should we respond to such a huge transaction…Jesus’ righteousness for our sin? There can be only one way to honour His gift, by living up to this perfect righteousness in all our thinking, speaking and acting. This means, that we do what Paul advocates, with all our commitment and energy.

Romans 8:13 NIV
[13] “For if you live according to the flesh, you will die; but if by the Spirit you PUT TO DEATH the misdeeds of the body, you will live.”

How far must we go?

Hebrews 12:4 NIV
[4] “In your struggle against sin, you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood.”

That far? Yes! Jesus did for us!

How is it possible, then, to live a righteous life in keeping with our righteous standing before God?

The Holy Spirit! In two ways…

John 16:8, 10 NLT
[8] “And when he (the Holy Spirit) comes, he will convict the world of its sin, and of God’s righteousness, and of the coming judgment…
[10] Righteousness is available because I go to the Father, and you will see me no more.”

The Holy Spirit convinces the believer of righteousness, not sin. Even when we do sin, He does not condemn us. He holds before us Christ’s righteousness, to motivate us to live up to that righteousness.

The Holy Spirit also empowers us to live righteously when we follow His leading.

Romans 8:14-15 NLT
[14] “For all who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God. [15] So you have not received a spirit that makes you fearful slaves. Instead, you received God’s Spirit when he adopted you as his own children. Now we call him, “Abba, Father.”

The Holy Spirit is God’s provision to help us overcome sin and to live righteous lives. On top of that…

2 Peter 1:3-4 NLT
[3] “By his divine power, God has given us everything we need for living a godly life. We have received all of this by coming to know him, the one who called us to himself by means of his marvelous glory and excellence. [4] And because of his glory and excellence, he has given us great and precious promises. These are the promises that enable you to share his divine nature and escape the world’s corruption caused by human desires.”

We have every reason and all the equipment we need to honour the righteousness of Jesus in us by living up to it through the power of the Holy Spirit and the power of His promises.

David gives us a great way to keep the wonder of this gift of righteousness always in mind.

Psalms 116:12-13 NIV
[12] “What shall I return to the Lord for all his goodness to me? [13] I will lift up the cup of salvation and call on the name of the Lord.”

TO REIGN, WE MUST SUFFER – 4

Christian Life, ,

To conclude, then…

Many streams of the church today are looking for and preaching an easy “gospel”. Prosperity, comfort, freedom from pain and suffering, a faith that demands and gets what it wants…these are all on the agenda of many modern preachers. Notice how this kind of preaching panders to the fleshly appetites and desires we are to put to death.

However, God is far more concerned about our holiness than about our ease and comfort. In fact, if it pleased the Lord to cause Jesus to suffer…

Isaiah 53:10 NIV
[10] “Yet it was the Lord’s will to crush him and cause him to suffer, and though the Lord makes his life an offering for sin, he will see his offspring and prolong his days, and the will of the Lord will prosper in his hand.”

…and, since we are to be like Him in this world…

1 John 4:17 NIV
[17]”This is how love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment: In this world we are like Jesus.”

…it also pleases the Lord when we suffer with Jesus because, although everyone suffers in this life, suffering as Jesus suffered, resisting the temptation to pay back, is His way of restoring the image of Jesus in His children.

Hebrews 12:7 NLT
[7] “As you endure this divine discipline, remember that God is treating you as his own children. Who ever heard of a child who is never disciplined by its father?”

So serious is the Father that we are to be like His Son that suffering may even cost some of us our lives.

Hebrews 12:4 NIV
[4]”In your struggle against sin, you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood.”

Didn’t Jesus say that we can only be His disciples if we take up our “cross” daily and follow Him? So serious is God about our holiness that Paul warned…

Romans 8:13 NIV
[13] “For if you live according to the flesh, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live.”

Living according to the flesh is just as much about reacting to unjust suffering by becoming angry, resentful, and vengeful and retaliating as it is about indulging the sinful desires that drag us into wicked behaviour.

Indulging in sinful attitudes rather than in the way Jesus dealt with injustices will also cost us a role in God’s kingdom. Again, Paul warned, (and he was writing to believers)…

Galatians 5:19-21 NIV
[19] “The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; [20] idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions [21] and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.”

Among the evil deeds of the flesh, Paul included evil attitudes and responses such as anger, dissention, hatred, envy, jealousy, etc.

It seems that those believers who have never gained victory over their wicked responses to suffering will lose everything but their salvation.

1 Corinthians 3:11-15 NLT
[11] “For no one can lay any foundation other than the one we already have—Jesus Christ.

[12] Anyone who builds on that foundation may use a variety of materials—gold, silver, jewels, wood, hay, or straw. [13] But on the judgment day, fire will reveal what kind of work each builder has done. The fire will show if a person’s work has any value. [14] If the work survives, that builder will receive a reward. [15] But if the work is burned up, the builder will suffer great loss. The builder will be saved, but like someone barely escaping through a wall of flames.”

To suffer as Jesus did, God has given us all the equipment we need.

Romans 5:17 NIV
[17]”For if, by the trespass of the one man, death reigned through that one man, how much more will those who receive God’s abundant provision of grace and of the gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man, Jesus Christ!”

2 Peter 1:3-4 NIV
[3] “His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. [4] Through these he has given us his VERY GREAT AND PRECIOUS PROMISES, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature, having escaped the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.”

Peter…yes, the Peter who denied that he knew Jesus, AFTER years of learning to walk in the Spirit, discovered the way to escape the corruption caused by evil desires.

2 Peter 1:5-11 NLT
[5] “In view of all this, (all the equipment God has given us to escape corruption) make every effort to respond to God’s promises. Supplement your faith with a generous provision of moral excellence, and moral excellence with knowledge, [6] and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with patient endurance, and patient endurance with godliness, [7] and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love for everyone. [8] The more you grow like this, the more productive and useful you will be in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. [9] But those who fail to develop in this way are shortsighted or blind, forgetting that they have been cleansed from their old sins. [10] So, dear brothers and sisters, work hard to prove that you really are among those God has called and chosen. Do these things, and you will never fall away. [11] Then God will give you a grand entrance into the eternal Kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.”

Every word in this quote is a signpost to guide us towards our destiny in Christ.

Grace, righteousness, precious promises…what more can God give us to overcome the demands of our flesh.? To crown it all, His Spirit in us calls attention to His provision and gives us His power to apply every part of His equipment so that…

Romans 8:37 NLT
[37]”… Despite all these things, overwhelming victory is ours through Christ, who loved us.”

We began this topic by calling attention to the one condition that allows us to share in Christ’s glory.

Romans 8:17 NLT
[17] “And since we are his children, we are his heirs. In fact, together with Christ we are heirs of God’s glory. But IF WE ARE TO SHARE HIS GLORY, WE MUST ALSO SHARE HIS SUFFERING.”

We have gathered as much information about the “what” and the “how” of Jesus’ suffering as we can. We have measured our own responses by the way He responded to unjust treatment. We have discovered the way to overwhelming victory when the flesh threatens to overpower us.

Let’s take this warning, this instruction, this process seriously so that we, too, will learn to suffer with Jesus as He did, so that we will…

2 Peter 1:10-11 NLT
[10] “…never fall away. [11] Then God will give you a grand entrance into the eternal Kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.”

TO REIGN, WE MUST SUFFER – 3

Christian Life, ,

So far, we have learned that Jesus’ suffering lay in His resistance to the strength of the temptation to sin in response to His rejection by His own people. What was He tempted to do that caused Him so much suffering that He cried to the Father to save Him from death?

In what way does temptation cause suffering?

For both Jesus and Paul (who had to suffer as part of his calling – Acts 9:16), suffering was specifically “in the flesh”.

1 Peter 4:1 KJV
[1] “Forasmuch then as Christ hath suffered for us IN THE FLESH, arm yourselves likewise with the same mind: for he that hath suffered in the flesh hath ceased from sin…”

Paul experience this suffering when he was rejected by the Romans and by his own people.

2 Corinthians 12:7 NIV
[7]”…Therefore, in order to keep me from becoming conceited, I was given a thorn IN MY FLESH, a messenger of Satan, to torment me.”

As with Jesus and Paul, our “flesh”, also called our “evil desires”, is the part of us that is tempted.

James 1:13-15 NIV
[13] “When tempted, no one should say, “God is tempting me.” For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone; [14] but each person is tempted when they are dragged away by their own EVIL DESIRE and enticed. [15] Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.”

In what way were Jesus and Paul enticed to sin? Both were the object of the intense hatred of their own people and the Roman government. They were both hounded to death. Jesus died on a Roman cross. Paul was rescued and then, eventually martyred for his faith in Jesus. Both Jesus and Paul help us to understand what we suffer when we are tempted, and how to deal with it. Both were subjected to the unjust treatmeant that provoked the feelings of outrage and anger that tempted them to retaliate.

1 Peter 2:19, 21-23 NIV
[19] For it is commendable if someone bears up under the pain of unjust suffering because they are conscious of God…
[21] To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps… [23] When they hurled their insults at him, HE DID NOT RETALIATE; when he suffered, he made no threats. Instead, he entrusted himself to him who judges justly.”

The real suffering is the in struggle to resist the temptation, first, to become angry, resentful, and bitter, because of unjust treatment and, second, to retaliate, to take revenge on the offender, to hurt the one who hurt us.

So Paul urges…

Romans 12:17, 19-21 NIV
[17] “Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everyone….
[19] Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: “It is mine to avenge; I will repay,” says the Lord. [20] On the contrary: “If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink. In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head.” [21] Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.”

Retaliation! Isn’t this the cause of the greatest evils in the world?
Jesus drew His disciples’ attention to this issue that starts with a thought and leads to murder. “Don’t even get angry because it is the beginning of the downward slide of retaliation that ends up in murder.”

Matthew 5:21-22 NLT
[21] “You have heard that our ancestors were told, ‘You must not murder. If you commit murder, you are subject to judgment.’ [22] But I say, if you are even angry with someone, you are subject to judgment! If you call someone an idiot, you are in danger of being brought before the court. And if you curse someone, you are in danger of the fires of hell.”

How did Jesus win this battle? He followed His own counsel. He put His case in the Father’s hands. “He entrusted Himself to Him who judges justly.”

The verdict?

[22] “He committed no sin, and no deceit was found in his mouth.”

How did Paul win his battle?

2 Corinthians 12:8-10 NIV
[8] “Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. [9] But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. [10] That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.”

Paul turned the thorn into a blessing. He received the barbs of hatred and rejection, not as weapons to poison him, but as a gift from the Lord to reveal his weakness and his need for grace.

He celebrated God’s goodness through every poke and prick of the “thorns”, or “fiery darts” fired at him by those who rejected him.

Paul also did what Jesus instructed.

Matthew 5:11-12 NIV
[11] “Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. [12] Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.”

It’s no wonder Paul could write…

Romans 8:28 NIV
[28] “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.”

Every adversity he suffered and overcame was a step nearer to the Christ-likeness he craved. Keeping his eye in the goal, he could declare with passionate assurance…

Romans 8:35, 37 NIV
[35] “Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword?
[37] No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.”

To be concluded…